President's preschool proposal getting attention

ST. LOUIS (KSDK) - President Obama said Tuesday during his State of the Union address that getting kids off to a stronger start can help increase graduation rates and reduce teenage pregnancies, but he didn't provide a lot of details.

Obama did say that his plan would zero in on low-and-moderate-income 4-year old children.

The preschool program in the Riverview Gardens School District is the only program in the system that is fully accredited, with 151 students, ages six-weeks to 5-years-old are enrolled.

Educators say while they don't know everything President Obama's new policy will entail, they believe that for many children, preschool is a must.

There are no details yet on how much the federal government is prepared to spend on the plan or how much states will have to contribute.

Teach for America leaders are optimistic about the proposal. They recruit and contract with recent graduates to teach in urban or rural school districts for two years.

The president also proposed creating a 10,000 member group of science and math teachers to help students excel in those subjects.